Saban Brands Acquires Digimon Anime Brand

Saban Brands on Tuesday said that it has acquired the popular Japanese anime franchise Digimon for an undisclosed amount.

The Los Angeles brand management arm of billionaire Haim Saban’s Saban Capital Group will work with Los Angeles production and distribution company MarVista Entertainment for distribution of the television series outside of Asia. Toei Animation Co. Ltd., a Japanese animation studio, will handle licensing and distribution of the property in Asia.

Digimon explores a parallel digital world in which powerful digital creatures known as Digimon battle for supremacy with the aid of young human partners, similar to the animated world of Pokemon. It was first brought to the U.S. television in 1999 by Fox Family Worldwide, then a Saban property.

“We’re thrilled to reconnect Saban Brands with Digimon, an entertainment franchise that embodies the strong fan base and growth potential we look for in new additions to our portfolio,” said Saban Brands President Elie Dekel in a statement.

Digimon is the second Saban Brands acquisition in as many weeks. The company last week acquired Zui, a child-friendly Internet portal based in San Diego, also for an undisclosed amount.